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4.
Authenticity: The
New Essential Ingredient
Authenticity is the new transparency. For the
industry, it’s not about what they say; it’s about
what they do – or don’t do. The food and
beverage industry is being held accountable for
its commitments like never before on everything
from production methods to sourcing, third-party
certification, product renovation and financial
investments. And if they don’t walk the walk?
Consumers will walk away.
Image by brookfordfarm / CC BY
The European Parliament rejected a draft law in October 2015
that would give individual European countries scope to ban
imports of GMO food and animal feed, potentially killing an
initiative that was greeted with widespread criticism and
much controversy.
01

5.
The word ‘entomography’ could be rolling off the
tip of your tongue in the next 12-18 months.
With increased pressure on the world’s food
supply, consumers and chefs are more and more
open to exploring new nutrition sources – and
discovering what 80% of the world’s countries
already know. Edible insects offer the potential
to stand out both as an environmentally-friendly
source of food and an adventuresome dish for
adventurous foodies.
02
Insect Interest
In the last year, several insect products have appeared in
the Western market. One Dutch artist turns insects into a
luxury candy.

6.
Climate Change Drives
Consumer Concern
Erratic weather, altered harvest seasons and
record storms are negatively impacting global food
production, and consumers are starting to
understand how climate change will alter our food
supply. Consumers’ growing knowledge is leading
to an expectation that industry change its
behavior – and the realization that they need to
change their own.
03
Excessive downpours in Brazil due to El Nino have reduced
the amount of sweetener that can be extracted from cane.
Image by Massmo Relsig / CC BY

7.
04
From 3D food to virtual reality and “wearables,”
technology is revolutionizing the food and
beverage industry, changing where ingredients
come from, evolving production methods, altering
the way food looks and tastes, and empowering
consumers to know more about what they
consume and the implications of their food and
beverage choices.
Tech Talk
Image by pestoverde / CC BY / Colorbalanced from original
A 3D Pasta Printer is in development by Barilla,* an Italian
company steeped in heritage.
*Edelman client

8.
Waste Not, Want Not
With the scarcity of food resources now and in
the future, food waste is a social and political
cause that makes ugly foods appetizing, expiration
dates debatable and leftovers look likely.
05
A “Landfill” salad made from food scraps was served to global
dignitaries at the UN lunch in NYC in September 2015.

9.
In the wake of the Sriracha phenomenon, spice
continues to intensify across the spectrum of
foods and beverages, allowing us to introduce
some of the hottest peppers into some of the
most everyday food and beverages. When it
comes to what we eat and drink…the hotter,
the better.
06
It’s Not Just The Planet
That’s Heating Up
The UK recently began selling its hottest ever commercially
grown pepper, the Komodo Dragon.
Image by sally_monster / CC BY

10.
07
Accustomed to unprecedented access to global
flavors and experiences, today’s consumers want
their cheese to be artisanal, their beer to be craft
and their bread to be oven-fresh whenever the
mood hits them. But they also don’t need to go to
a fancy restaurant or upscale retailer to get it. The
foodie experience? It’s now for everyone.
Gourmet For All
Half of Paris’ 20 arrondissements have now provided
spaces for food trucks.
Image by Susanne Nilsson / CC BY

11.
In a fiercely competitive global marketplace,
legacy brands and the companies that make them
are under unprecedented scrutiny. As a result,
food and beverage companies are being forced to
self-regulate, engage in ways that resonate, and
innovate and renovate like never before.
08
Big Food:
Big Expectations
The importance of supply chain transparency has impacted
the food industry worldwide, as top suppliers like Nestlé*,
Tyson’s, Cargill, Smithfield, Starbucks*, Aramark, McDonald’s
and more have released requirements to improve their
supply chains.
*Edelman client
Image by lyza / CC BY / Colorbalanced from Original

12.
09
Age of the Recipe Hack
There is a renewed focus on the art and science of
cooking. However, how we define “homemade” is
changing and foodies don’t mind using a few
short-cuts to get to their home cooked meal.
International editions of "MasterChef Junior"—some aiming
to reach kids as young as 4 years old—already are on the air
or in the works in 18 countries, including Thailand, India, the
U.K. and Denmark.
Image by stijnnieuwendijk / CC BY / Colorbalanced from original

13.
10
The sustained growth and popularity of food
delivery, in the form of order-and-pay apps, third-
party online ordering and delivery services, allows
consumers to get what they want, whenever they
want it, presenting an opportunity for companies
to test all types of delivery concepts. The rise of
delivery firmly ensconces food and beverage into
our global sharing economy.
Demand for Delivery
In the face of China’s weakening economy, diners are turning
to apps for meal delivery deals, resulting in a surge of startups
and a dizzying array of delivery options for consumers.

14.
There’s expanded thinking around the crux of
food safety; it’s no longer exclusively about
foodborne illness, but also the long-term impact
of ingredients in food and beverages.
Interestingly, crowdsourcing technology, via
search engines like Yelp, are helping pinpoint the
location of food safety outbreaks. But, as the
number of food scares and incidents of faulty
products rise worldwide, brands have an
opportunity to use their food safety platforms to
establish trust.
11
Food Safety:
Tough to Trust
Nestlé’s* popular Maggi Noodles were recalled and removed
from shelves for nearly six months due to potentially unsafe
amounts of lead, sparking debate, a huge dip in Nestlé’s sales
and the testing of other brands. Within a month of this
incident, sales of the entire instant noodles market in India
fell by 80 percent.
*Edelman client
Image by niaid / CC BY

15.
12
Customers have long called the shots when it
comes to dining out, but restaurateurs are
starting to push back, as they increasingly
experiment with solutions to problems like no
shows, last-minute cancellations, wage
discrepancies and rampant cell phone abuse at
the table.
Restaurants Take Control
Joe’s Crab Shack recently became the very first national U.S.
chain to eliminate tipping in stores, showcasing how the
trend is already trickling from fine dining to casual.
Image by south-african-tourism / CC BY / Colorbalanced from original

16.
Rising beef prices, horror over hormones, health
concerns, the growth of farmers markets and
more have all helped pave the way for veggies to
go mainstream as a main course. Veggies, oft-
thought of as more of a side dish, have moved
firmly into the center of the plate.
13
Veggies Front & Center
Tokyo, rated 2015’s greatest food city, uses fresh vegetables
that command very high prices prices. Produce is an integral
part of the city’s culinary scene.
Image by mr_t_in_dc / CC BY

17.
Hunger for Heritage
From Peruvian chicken to Korean bibimbap to
your grandmother’s bone broth, new culinary
traditions blend old with new to mark a rise of
authenticity and heritage.
14
Bone broth began sweeping through the U.S. in 2014, and
the trend continues to gain interest from celebrities, chefs
and consumers alike.
Image by danielygo / CC BY / Colorbalanced from original

18.
Neurogastronomy – how the brain creates
flavor and triggers our perception of it – is a
buzzword for restaurateurs and food
manufacturers, with high-tech settings able to
dramatically enhance mood and flavor, either
for an otherworldly dining experience or
health benefits.
15
Multisensory
is Multipurpose
The “Dining in the Dark” experience hits Africa by way
of a new restaurant in Nairobi, where the blind
restaurant staff was trained by French restaurateurs.
Image by yelp / CC BY / Colorbalanced from original

19.
16
The next target audience has arrived and it’s here
to stay. Meet Generation Z – younger, richer and
more diverse than ever. While their Gen Y brethren
want to reinvent the system, Gen Z wants to
recreate it. If food and beverage brands want to
appeal to this generation’s environmental
sensibility, short attention span, pragmatism, need
for personalization and eye for quality without
premium pricing, they’ll need to think fresh, think
interesting and think bite-size.
Gen Z Rising
More than half of Gen Z enjoy trying different foods. They have
a willingness to explore innovative flavors and ingredients.